Schalke sack manager Tedesco after Man City thrashing

The Bundesliga outfit are now looking for a new head coach after five successive defeats in all competitions

Schalke have announced that head coach Domenico Tedesco has been relieved of his duties with immediate effect.

The club made the announcement on Thursday and have said former manager Huub Stevens will take charge of the team for the weekend’s Bundesliga clash with RB Leipzig.

Head of Sport, Jochen Schneider said via the club’s official website: “This decision was anything but easy, as we really appreciate Domenico Tedesco at Schalke.

“He developed the side very well last season that ended with us finishing runners-up, however, we can’t fail to recognise that the development this season has been negative.

“When I took the job, I demanded a turnaround due to the current situation in the Bundesliga. After careful consideration, we came to the conclusion that this wouldn’t be possible with the current staff.

“Domenico Tedesco deserves our thanks for the work he did over the past two years. He has always conducted himself commendably and fully identified with the club and its values.”

Tedesco leaves Schalke with them 14th in the table and fearing for their Bundesliga status after such a promising campaign in 2017-18.

The Royal Blues finished second to Bayern Munich last season and amassed an impressive 63 points. However, this year things have taken a turn for the worse and Tedesco has failed to maintain the previous standards he set at the Veltins Arena.

Tedesco joined Schalke in June 2017 from second-tier side Erzgebirge Aue, whom he previously saved from relegation.

Stevens, his short-term replacement, is well known within the Gelsenkirchen club having previously managed them on two separate occasions, the first between 1996-2002 and the second coming in 2011 when he managed the side for 15 months.

Under Stevens’ reign, Schalke won the UEFA Cup in 1997 and four years later claimed the DFB-Pokal.

His first job will be to get his side ready for the league clash with RB Leipzig before a two-week international break.

Should Stevens still be in charge when the players return, he face a trip to Hannover before hosting Werder Bremen in the quarter-final of the DFB-Pokal.